Giants outbid on Cuba's Rusney Castillo

Rusney Castillo slides into third base during a 2011 contest against the U.S. in the Pan American Games in Mexico.

Rusney Castillo slides into third base during a 2011 contest against the U.S. in the Pan American Games in Mexico.

Photo: Raul Arboleda, AFP/Getty Images

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The Astros' Chris Carter, once of the A's, breaks a tie with a three-run homer in the top of the ninth at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday. Carter is the reigning AL player of the week.

The Astros' Chris Carter, once of the A's, breaks a tie with a three-run homer in the top of the ninth at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday. Carter is the reigning AL player of the week.

Photo: Mike Stobe, Getty Images

Giants outbid on Cuba's Rusney Castillo

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In the end, the Giants couldn't compete. They were interested in Rusney Castillo, the latest sensation from Cuba, and were reportedly among a handful of teams in the running earlier this week. But Castillo was working to finalize a seven-year, $72.5 million deal with the Red Sox on Friday, and so ended the discussion.

What will the Giants be missing? We should know before long. The Red Sox reportedly plan to place him immediately on the big-league league roster, there to join fellow Cuban defector Yoenis Céspedes. There's nothing to lose in Boston, hopelessly out of the AL East race, so Castillo is likely to see some playing time in center field.

That's if he's not playing shortstop, a position he often played in Cuba. This is a gifted athlete, on the smaller side (5-foot-9, 185 pounds) but said to offer a rich combination of power and speed, having drawn comparisons to Kirby Puckett and Rickey Henderson.

This represents a big gamble by the Red Sox, but then again, that was the climate surrounding the signings of Céspedes, Yasiel Puig, Reds reliever Aroldis Chapman and the White Sox's likely Rookie of the Year, Jose Abreu. Cuban talent is at a premium these days, and the Giants were eager to make Castillo part of their future.

"He's a legitimate leadoff hitter-center fielder," general manager Brian Sabean said last week. The Giants already have that player in Angel Pagan, and they continue to envision Brandon Crawford developing into an elite all-around shortstop, but they weren't backing off Castillo. Not until the numbers went off the charts.

The Giants have committed $121 million to their 2015 payroll with some major decisions looming at third base, left field, the rotation, the bullpen and the bench (assuming Joe Panik continues to impress at second base). They dread having to re-sign Pablo Sandoval to a five-year deal - likely to be in the $75 million-$90 million range, the way he's playing - and they backed off big-money deals at the trading deadline, so they weren't about to match the Red Sox's offer for Castillo (nor were the Detroit Tigers, said to be the other finalist in the bidding).

Castillo, 27, defected last December and established residence in Haiti this spring. He held a public workout in Florida last month, and as Giants executive Bobby Evans said Friday, everyone was impressed with his "tools" and "strong showing." He's still something of a mystery - but that's about to change.

Angels in transition

Solid pickup by the Angels in White Sox second baseman Gordon Beckham. Said to be in Buster Posey's class in the 2008 draft, Beckham hasn't hit much (.244 lifetime) but he's rock-solid defensively. He loomed as a solution for the Giants until Panik made his move. ... Just when fans savored a tantalizing debate about the most dynamic young pitchers in the American League playoff picture - Sonny Gray, Garrett Richards and the Royals' Yordano Ventura - Richards went down with a season-ending knee injury, a devastating blow to the Angels. But that club has too much hitting to go away. ... The A's were right about Chris Carter: He'll forever be tormented by strikeouts and a paltry batting average. But he's perfect for Houston, a team in desperate need of stardom, and his 30 homers are "just the beginning for him," manager Bo Porter told reporters. "This guy has figured some things out." ... Trying to fathom the Giants' paltry home record, reader Mark Di Giorgio pointed out the team's 17-25 record (at the time of his writing) since the opening of the new center-field garden. He titled his e-mail "Why I Don't Like Vegetables." ... New Clippers owner Steve Ballmer introduced himself to the fan base at Staples Center this week, and it's hard to tell who enjoyed it more - the Clippers or the Warriors. Working up a sweat, Ballmer stalked the stage like a crazed evangelist, yelling "Boom, baby!" and "Hard core" among other exhortations. When ESPN's Shelly Smith asked if he minded being portrayed as "a psychotic wild beast" - a description dating to his days at Microsoft - he wasn't the slightest bit offended. Sitting in chairs behind Ballmer, the players were pleasantly stunned; after all, this is the man replacing the grotesque Donald Sterling. But the Warriors have to be wondering, what does Ballmer do for an encore? What's his public stance if the team loses five games in a row? Pretty tough act to follow.

If the World Cup soccer got you interested in the English Premier League, don't miss "Match of the Day" on the NBC Sports Network every Saturday and Sunday, a lengthy rundown of each game with the game-day broadcasters and no annoying music. Best highlights show on television. ... This week's U.S. Open tennis tournament marks a triumph for Matt Cronin, the sterling Bay Area journalist who underwent brain surgery in March. Deeply respected for his knowledge, reporting (www.tennisreporters.net, among many other outlets) and interviewing skills, Cronin was rendered helpless during a long recovery process at home in Moraga with his wife and three kids. "It became big for me just to be able to talk," he said on a recent Tennis.com podcast, and he's still not confident in his writing. But he set New York as a goal, fought hard to make it happen, and plans to lend his voice to the U.S. Open radio broadcasts (found on www.usopen.org). "I'm not going to be perfect," he said. "I just really want to try, to do a little bit." Welcome back, Matt, and be well.